Co. Cavan athletes in recent Universities indoor championships
THE Irish Universities Indoor Championships took place recently at the indoor arena in Nenagh.
The recent refurbishments to the facility failed to banish the penetrating cold generated by the seasonal stormy weather, however there was a positive atmosphere among the students who had gathered to compete for the country`s third level colleges.
Five Breffni athletes
in action
Five Cavan athletes were in action, representing five separate institutions.
For racewalker Paul Fitzpat-rick it turned out to be a landmark occasion as he marked his first appearance for Dundalk Institute of Technology by winning the college`s first ever title at the championships.
Paul never appeared under threat as he pulled away from the field in the 2km walk to win by almost a lap in a time of 8.49.
Fellow Cavan-man Michael Muldoon fought a dogged battle for the third place medal in the walk, hanging on grimly till the line to secure the bronze medal for UCD. James Ruxton made a return to competition following a layoff due to injury and produced a solid effort to win his 400m heat in 51.3 seconds.
Having been boxed in after the opening lap of the final, he fought his way up to third place and won a well-deserved bronze medal for Dublin City University.
Throwers Matthew O`Reilly, Carlow IT, and Hugh Fitzpatrick, TCD, battled hard for the medals only to miss out by a narrow margin. Hugh finished fourth in the Weight for Distance and 6th in the shot putt while Matthew finished 5th in the shot putt and eighth in the WFD.
